Ted Cruz, Mike Lee missing from GOP lunch

Senate Republicans huddled Tuesday to discuss the latest on the fiscal crisis engulfing the Capitol, but two key members of their conference were missing from the lunch: Ted Cruz of Texas and Mike Lee of Utah.

Multiple senators confirmed the absence of the two senators, who have led the crusade in the Senate to shred the president’s health care law.

Mike Lee: No apologies

Cruz and Lee could become an obstacle to moving quickly on a fiscal deal in the Senate, where consent from all 100 senators is required for speedy action. Asked repeatedly on Monday evening whether he would object to an emerging deal in the Senate to raise the debt ceiling and reopen the federal government, Cruz declined to respond.

“We need to see what the details are,” Cruz said on Monday night.

That pending agreement was being negotiated by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, but those talks were put on pause as the focus turned to the House and its plan to avert a potential debt default and end the government shutdown.

A Lee spokesman emailed in response to Lee skipping the lunch: “They have three [lunches] every week. He doesn’t always go to each one.”

A Cruz spokeswoman said the senator had been planning on attending the conference meeting that was originally scheduled for 11 a.m. Tuesday but was canceled and that Cruz had a “previous commitment” during lunchtime.